Butte County settles racial discrimination lawsuit filed by former deputy

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An agreement has been reached in a racial discrimnation lawsuit filed in 2015 by a former Butte County sheriff’s deputy. The deputy, Michael Sears, alleged he was also the target of harassment, including having his badge number written on the mug shots of famous black people and a stuffed panda bear doll hung in his workplace. (Emily Bertolino — Enterprise-Record file)

SACRAMENTO — Butte County has settled a lawsuit filed by a former Butte County sheriff’s deputy who alleged he was the target of workplace discrimination, harassment and retaliation because of his race.

According to a settlement agreement obtained by this newspaper Tuesday, the county will issue a payment of $645,000 to the former deputy, Michael Sears, and Mastagni Holstedt, APC, the law firm that represents him.

By entering into the agreement, the named defendants in the case, including Butte County, the Butte County Sheriff’s Office, former sheriff’s Capt. Andy Duch and Lt. John Kuhn, do not admit engaging in any unlawful conduct.

Sears and the county also agreed they would not make disparaging comments about each other.

Sears, who began working at the Sheriff’s Office in July 2007, filed a civil complaint for damages in March 2015, alleging that department employees used racial slurs disparaging black people, he was passed over for assignments because of his race, and he was harassed by colleagues in his workplace.

Sears is described in court documents as African-American and Sicilian.

Sears alleged that in 2010 a stuffed panda doll was hung with a rope attached to a ceiling of a Sheriff’s Office facility, staying there for more than three years, according to court documents. The panda, another deputy said under questioning, effectively symbolized Sears because he is “half-black and half-white.”

Sears further alleged that a poster depicting the “mug shots” of public figures and celebrities, including Jesse Jackson and James Brown, was hung in his workplace, with his badge number written on the poster next to the photographs, according to court documents.

Sears also alleged he was passed over for promotions and other assignments, positions he had been qualified to perform but instead went to “less-qualified non-African-American candidates,” according to court documents.

The county has contended it was Sears’ work performance that affected his ability to promote or transfer positions.

Sears, according to court documents, notified the Sheriff’s Office in October 2017 of his intent to resign from the department because he had accepted a police officer position with the city of Oroville.

Sears’ lawsuit led the Butte County NAACP to call for reforms at the Sheriff’s Office, claiming the alleged problem of discriminatory conduct at the department has been pervasive and a part of its culture for years.

Sheriff Kory Honea has said the department has taken steps in recent years to promote fairness throughout the Sheriff’s Office, including cultural diversity and procedural justice training.

Butte County Counsel Bruce Alpert did not provide comment. Sears could not be reached before deadline Tuesday.

Andre Byik was the public safety reporter for the Chico Enterprise-Record, where he covered crime, courts and breaking news until early 2019. A Chico State graduate, he continues to work in Chico newspapers at the Chico News and Review.